The Environmental Protection Agency has awarded Lexington a $200,000 grant to go toward cleanup at the old Fayette County Courthouse. The funds are administered through what’s called the EPA Brownfields Program, which aims to help communities rid properties of contaminates so they can be repurposed.
Tom Webb, an environmental initiatives program manager with the city, says the courthouse is an ideal candidate.
"When the courthouse was constructed and as it's been used over the years, you have plenty of materials that weren't really a concern when they were used, like lead-based paint and asbestos," he says.
Webb says the city should be able to put the grant dollars to work in about six months.
Mayor Jim Gray has set aside $22 million in his 2015-16 budget to restore the ailing courthouse, but it will be up to the Urban County Council to decide whether the project should be funded.